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Marcus Doidge's Top Ten 2008

Our reviewer Marcus Doidge lists his favourite movies of the year gone by...

I’ve opted for a top ten list of movies I’ve enjoyed this year as opposed to a list of the best releases. This is mostly down to the fact that I don’t think there’s been enough stand out all-rounders this year and whilst there’ve been a few that have stood out over the rest, it’s seemed to be only for one element, whether it be picture, sound or a few good features.

As for 2008’s movie year, we’ve had a pretty great year overall, with plenty to go see and lots to enjoy. Countering that though, despite there being a lot of great movies on offer in 2008 and a great deal that I had a lot of fun with, I have to say there hasn’t been a lot that I truly fell for. In fact, I’d say that it was probably only my top five that I one hundred percent connected to and had a mini love affair with but hey, that’s just me.

So without further ado, let’s commence with the first entry in my top ten of 2008.

I was hooked on this one from that very first preview on Superbad. Then with the first proper trailer featuring the MIA 'Paper Planes' track, Pineapple Express escalated to one of my most anticipated comedies of the year. As you can see with its appearance in my top ten, I wasn’t disappointed (the same can't be said of a certain other porno related Seth Rogan film this year—but that's for another time).

Pineapple Express fits into the age old comedy formula of a couple of hapless guys who get involved with some crime lords by no fault of their own. As with the formula, the hapless guys freak out with some comic hi-jinks and the bad guys mistakenly assume that they are dealing with some ‘real pros’. This is a tried and tested set up which I’ve always adored in films like Dumb and Dumber and See No Evil, Hear No Evil.

Pineapple Express brings its own slant via writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. These two, with a little help from Judd Apatow (who just owns the comedy scene at the moment) and the gold just carries on. At the forefront of this caper movie is one of the funniest and most lovable double acts of the year: Seth Rogan’s Dale Denton and James Franco’s Saul Silver; a fantastic duo whose relationship evolves beautifully over the course of the movie. Highlights for me are their long sleep in the car, Dale’s wrist-watch stopping and the borrowing of Dale’s jacket but there are a vast amount more laughs on offer here and I can’t tell you how much I giggled at Dale’s girlfriends dad threatening to ‘fuck you in the street’.

The Disc:

Not actually out until January 2009, but by the looks of it, Pineapple Express’s release seems to follow the Apatow checklist. Gag Reels, Line-o-ramas, on set laughs... I’m hoping for great things from this release.

Yes, another comedy and yes another Apatow produced movie, but this time it’s one that hardly anyone saw and those who did, didn’t like it. The negative reaction totally puzzles me. I loved Walk Hard when it came out at the beginning of 2008 and have since seen it over and over on Blu-ray and it grows on me more with every viewing.

Generally, I’m not a fan of the spoof. I usually find they go for the simple laughs at the expense of any sort of story or believability. Walk Hard goes way beyond the confines of the simple laughs. Dewey Cox (John C Reiley) is a fully developed character despite taking all of his life story elements from classic music history icons. The journey Cox goes on from rising star to lifetime achievement award winner is incredibly enjoyable and all of the supporting cast are just as memorable. The songs, that are as funny as they are well written, fill out Cox’s career with a sense of a genuine alternative music history and the actual look of the film is way beyond what you’d expect.

As well as thoroughly enjoying Dewey Cox’s life story, I also love what else Walk Hard achieves. It fires a lethal blow at the biopic genre that has become so generic of late. Walk the Line and Ray are the two biggies it takes down (as well as a handful that are yet to be made) by highlighting some of the more lazy story telling clichés these films rely on so heavily. The evils of success and drugs, rehab and womanising are all played on with such comedy genius that it almost feels as if no future biographies should even attempt to take the same trodden in avenues without feeling comedic. So, frankly not only is Walk Hard a movie I can laugh at but does its best to ensure that future biopics might actually be interesting. Good Job!

The Disc:

The region free two disc US Blu-ray is a fantastic little package. It comes with great picture and sound, some hilarious extra features as well as an extended version of the film. There’s a fake documentary about how Dewy Cox influenced artists like Jewel, Sheryl Crow and a handful of others, loads of ‘original’ recordings of Cox’s songs and the awesomely funny advertisement for Cox Sausages (‘It doesn’t say Cox, unless I say it tastes like Cox’). In fact, this is probably one of the best Blu-ray packages I’ve seen this year.

I can hardly believe that this came out in 2008 (I know, in the US it was 2007). No Country For Old Men just feels like a movie that’s been around for ages, with that beautifully timeless Coen Brothers feel. The use of landscape and Tommy Lee Jones’s voiceover all making this feel like a modern classic.

To much critical acclaim, Javier Bardem’s Anton Chigurh instantly became one of the greatest movie villains of all time. Every moment that he’s on screen makes you feel uneasy; his accent, his tone, his haircut. It all adds a weight to his presence and all this before he even pulls out his bolt pistol which is the cherry on this killer's cake. After watching this performance (and partly fuelled by my wife falling in love with him after his Oscar acceptance speech and demanding we see more of his movies) I’ve taken great delight in catching up with nearly all of Javier’s film catalogue this year and he really is one hell of an actor that 2008 opened my eyes up to. The Coen’s also had a pretty great year in 2008, what with this and Burn After Reading.

The Disc:

This was one of my early Blu-ray purchases and the picture quality is fantastic. Natural lighting, detailed images and great colours all make for a highly satisfactory viewing experience for this great movie. The special features are a little thin, but then the Coens’ movies have never been too strong in that department anyway. So at least they’re consistent.

While I wouldn’t say 2008 was the strongest of years for movies that I’ve fallen in love with, there have been an awful lot of great ones, here a few that deserve a mention despite not being included in the top ten list.

Well first off, what would a 2008 review be without mentioning Wall-E? Despite Wall-E not being in my overall top ten, there’s no denying the greatness of it. Pixar once again produced one hell of a movie and a character that is an all time classic, but for me the movie didn’t quite live up to the greatness of Wall-E as a character. I adore about seventy-five percent% of the movie (basically all that is Wall-E-centric) but the human element left me cold and a little underwhelmed. .

Aside from Wall-E, some other movies I really dug in 2008, were Dedication, which provided yet another fantastic Billy Crudup performance and In Bruges, which was probably Colin Farrell at his best since Tigerland, probably even better actually. Dan is Real Life was an under-loved gem which had some of 2008’s most heartfelt moments. Speed Racer was a family driven delight which looked amazing, the action scenes in The Incredible Hulk were some of the year’s best for me, but then Hulk has to do very little to impress me, just smash a few army trucks and cause a lot of devastation and I’m in! HULK SMASH!

Now back to the top ten...

Okay, I’ll admit that on my first viewing I wasn’t sure if I actually liked this new Indiana Jones instalment or if it had gone a little too far with its Fifties sci-fi subject matter, but now after multiple viewings I just love hanging out with Indy as much as I always have.

The new adventure is a solid one and while it’s by no means perfect, or indeed as slick as it might have been, there’s just so much fun to be had from the tried and trusted Indy formula. It’s refreshing to see some old school adventure storytelling without the lacklustre modern twists and goofiness that are offered up with the likes of The Mummy franchise and as I mentioned in my recent review here it all just comes down to Indiana Jones as a character and with Harrison Ford being this spot on in, everything else just gravitates around the legendary movie icon, making for feel good Spielberg/Lucas adventure greatness.

The Disc:

With the Blu-ray offering some pretty damn great video and audio, this Indiana Jones adventure is made all the more fun to revisit. From the opening Elvis track to the ‘you better not put that damn hat on Shia’ ending there is very little to complain about with this HD transfer. As for features, I personally found the main documentary a little too formulaic and failed to grasp the excitement of having the man with the hat and whip back on our screens but it’s still very detailed and watchable. As for the smaller featurettes, there’s enough to enjoy but this is Spielberg and Lucas so you know there’s still plenty to milk out of this release in future editions and unsurprisingly you might find yourself craving a little bit more.

As mentioned just before Christmas in the Gift Guide Article here I was torn between the this here Kung Fu Panda and Disney’s Wall-E. Having got to watch these again on Blu-ray, I’ve got to go with the Panda as my animated movie of the year. Judging by most of the other ‘Best of the Year’ articles in the media, I’m feeling that I’m very much in the minority on this one, but there’s just something about Kung Fu Panda that stuck with me a little more.

This is Dreamwork’s biggest fluke since the first Shrek. Maybe it’s because this project doesn’t feel like a riff on a Disney idea or it could be that it’s not clogged up with weak gags and references to current fads. Maybe it’s just that ‘there is no secret ingredient’. Whatever Panda has, it has it in spades. There’s something infectious about Po the Panda’s geek love of his Kung Fu; his admiration of the Furious Five or his ability to take the pain because he just loves being there so much. I love Dustin Hoffman‘s Shifu and the journey this character goes on, I totally dig the Turtle Master and every single thing he says and how he moves saying it and it’s refreshing to see a villain like Tai Lung in an animated movie. Seriously that final showdown is bad ass—‘Skadoosh!’

The Disc:

Dreamworks know how to put together some beautiful looking HD transfers and Kung Fu Panda is one of the most colourful I’ve seen to date. There are so many wow moments in this transfer I think I lost count. The selection of the Dragon Master, with its bright blue skies, colourful buildings, multiple characters and ticker tape falling everywhere is astonishing and the bold use of colour is striking throughout.

Features wise, typically a bit fluffy, with its music video and learn the dance steps stuff for the kids all present and correct but hey, maybe I’m not exactly its audience (or maybe I just sucked trying to learn the dance moves). Oh and Dreamworks, next time, include all the features form the DVD editions on the Blu-ray. Some of us completists might want to find out 'The Secrets of the Furious Five' as well.

The journey towards the release date of 01-18-08 might not have been quite as exciting in the UK, considering we didn’t get it till February, but that didn’t stop the excitement for this J.J Abrams produced project building up pretty damn high in the Doidge household. I, like many, was hooked on this one from the first trailer. From not knowing anything about it, through getting the confirmation it was a monster movie, right up to release and for me an early ‘region free’ purchase on my new Blu-ray player. This is one of those movies that wasn’t only great, but was made even more so by being a title I couldn’t wait to get hold of on home release.

Basically Godzilla told with a home movie style mixed with a lot of 9/11 imagery, Cloverfield had just the right amount of smarts to win me over. Yes, Hud should have put the camera down multiple times and yes, everyone is a little too pretty to be believable, but frankly I don’t care. I actually dig the simple draw of a guy going out on a limb to save the one he loves and how the struggle is made harder with a giant sea beast kicking New York’s ass over the drip fed info on the monster element itself. Back that up with the background easter eggs that may just give us a few more hints about the monster's origins and you've got yourself an awesome event-driven monster movie.

The Disc:

Hand-held camera footage has never looked this good and it has certainly never sounded this good either. Seriously, the sound on this release could blow a window out and it’s awesome. Also there’s a nice set of features, a good commentary and some great insight into just how clever the CGI work was here which is astonishing considering the budget.

As another little side order there were a good deal of Blu-rays this year that deserve an honourable mention for various reasons.

For starters Speed Racer is absolutely stunning in the picture department. Seriously, the colours and sheer amounts of stuff going on in this Wachowski come-back movie is enough to make a TV set beg for mercy through being overworked and the audio on The Incredible Hulk is just about enough to blow out some double glazed windows, especially in the final smack down with Abomination.

Wall-E is pretty much a stand out disc across the board for picture, audio and features and The Nightmare Before Christmas had a transfer that really showed off how an HD transfer can make a viewing experience even more of a delight by showing off all of the detail in its model work. Risky Business has a Tom Cruise video commentary which was a blast to watch and the catalogue release of JFK was a hell of a revisit to a much loved classic.

As for stand out features, Dark City probably takes the prize for most enjoyable documentary of the year and despite being let down by Batman: Gotham Knight as a project, there’s no denying the features were more than enough to warrant the purchase of the disc. Oh and TV wise, as always the latest season of LOST (season 4) was well worth the upgrade to HD with some cracking features.

Now onto the top four...

Because of the lack of Blu-ray release for this, I’ve only actually seen Lars and the Real Girl once, but that once was more than enough for me to fall in love with the movie. Ryan Gosling’s performance as Lars is fantastic, every mannerism packed with genuine feeling and there’s so much going on under the surface here you can’t help but be sucked into the story.

What really makes this one of the best movies of 2008 for me is how the community around Lars go along with pretty bizarre situation of a man and his life-like doll as if they are a genuine couple. How this affects Lars as a person and how he grows over the course of the movie is a pleasure to watch and just writing down these few paragraphs makes me want to watch it again right now.

The Disc:

I never actually picked this up due to the lack of Blu-ray release, but by the looks of the things it seems like there isn’t that much on the DVD anyway. Saying that, if this came out bare bones on Blu-ray tomorrow, I’d snap it up in a heartbeat. Damn I need to see this movie again!

This is another movie that feels a hell of a lot older than it is, but the UK didn’t get this until February, so 2008 it is. Juno is just one of those movies that I’m genetically built to like I think. I love a little indie drama with smart dialogue and great characters and Juno comes with both. Once you get through the clunky opening scene in the store, the film just becomes a delight. Ellen Page proves she’s a great lead who has a knack for making ultra cool dialogue sound natural, Jason Bateman provides a performance that skims the line of being a dude and being a douche and Jennifer Garner just melts your heart.

Supporting all this and adding yet another layer to the greatness of the movie is one of J.K Simmons’ finest performances to date, Allison Janney plays the step mum that dreams are made of and of course another star turn by the fantastic Michael Cera, whose act is always guaranteed to make me chuckle. Juno is just crammed full of heart without being too mushy and is genuinely a movie I could watch over and over.

The Disc:

I love being stunned by a good a low budget movies can look in HD and the Juno Blu-ray was pretty stunning to behold and with the great soundtrack sounding good too. Features wise there was also a lot to enjoy here. The fun and funky costume test is an interesting watch as well as some decent little featurettes and a solid commentary too.

The Mist is a movie that, in the handful of times I’ve watched it, works as well as it did the first time. Frank Darabont grabs you pretty much immediately and doesn’t let you go until that punch to the stomach ending (and what an ending it is).

Tom Jane once again proves to be one of my favourite actors, despite doing very little in regards to quality movies. His presence fits this character perfectly and he plays one of those characters you are just immediately behind with every decision he makes, no matter how dangerous they may be. The Mist also comes loaded with one of the best villains of the year, that being Marcia Gay Harden’s venomous Mrs Carmody, rather than the many mist-living beasties. She demands an audience reaction and my blood boils more as her influence grows over the store’s prisoners.

For me, The Mist is a modern classic to add to Frank Darabont’s ever growing filmography of classic movies and deserves a far wider audience that it seems to have received at this point in time. Read my full review here.

The Disc:

One of my favourite all-rounders of the year. Packed with some luscious visuals (especially in the black and white version), some effective audio and a nice batch of extras, including a Frank Darabont and Stephen King sit down chat and a great making of, this one really was one of the highlights to grace my TV screen in 2008.

Now seems a good time to acknowledge the ones that really didn’t do anything for me.

By far the two worst movies of the year for me were St Trinians, which even Russell Brand couldn’t save, and more so (on sheer disappointment) was AVP 2: Requiem, which single handily killed my last thread of hope for two of my most beloved franchises. I actually felt pretty ill after watching that one.

The Happening wasn’t just terrible, it left me feeling abused. Being a massive Shyamalan supporter over the years and defending him against many of my friends meant dealing with the unquestionable badness of The Happening was just an all round bad experience. Also the likes of Deception deserve a mention in this section as it felt like a movie someone had discovered unreleased in the Fox vaults from the mid-nineties and Eagle Eye, which was just crud, repetitive and some sort of joke, considering the twist was as age-old as VHS, goes to show that even the big stars can easily make turkeys.

There are a few more I could mention ( Slipstream, Mutant Chronicles, 27 Dresses) but I won’t. Why bother with the yawn-fests when we can get to the main event.

(Drumroll please) My favourite movie of 2008 is...

Finally a blockbuster event movie that not only lived up to the hype but blew a massive bat-sized flaming hole through the other side of it. I’ve already written way to much about The Dark Knight See my review here but The Dark Knight is a movie that totally worked for me. As a long time Bat-fan it was a joy to see Batman and the Joker back on our screens and handled with this much attention to detail.

There has been much hype over Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker and hopefully this will continue through awards season as the praise is totally justified. The more I watch The Dark Knight the more he just shines as the main element of what makes this movie so much more than it would have been without him. It helps that he’s playing the Joker, who in all honesty would demand this sort of presence anyway but the fact that Heath managed to capture the Joker almost exactly as he deserved to be portrayed on film is one hell of an achievement and it’s a shame that his untimely death will prevent that lightning striking twice.

The Dark Knight sits snugly at the top of my 2008 list mainly because it’s something I could enjoy again and again and more than likely will do over the coming years but also because it comes with one of my favourite scenes of the year (the Batman and Joker conversation in the interrogation room). Plus, as an extra special personal delight, I’m loving the fact that not only an event movie, but a superhero event movie managed to be the movie that hit my top spot—this just doesn’t happen much for me nowadays. Batman once again owns the superhero genre and frankly that’s exactly how it should be. Bring on another sequel...

The Disc:

Despite a few ‘issues’ with the video and audio that are fairly forgivable and easily ignored while viewing, this Blu-ray experience was generally a great one with the IMAX shots working wonders despite the odds stacked against them. The features are fifty-fifty with a great first disc and a very fluffy second. It’s a bit of a shame that one of the biggest movies of the year wasn’t as rewarding on home release as I’d have liked but as I said in my review, this won’t be the last edition we see of The Dark Knight.

So, with 2008 behind us, 2009 is already looking like a hell of a year. For starters and not too far off (hopefully) Watchmen finally makes it to our screens. This one has been a long time coming and judging from the trailers, is already shaping up to be movie of the year, for me at least. On top of that, we already know we’re getting multiple editions on home release, with the theatrical cut, the extended edition and a special ‘Black Freighter’ animated feature. This one has me hyped beyond belief right now.

Beyond that, there’s the Wolverine movie that might work, but Gambit and Deadpool have a way to go to convince me. Transformers 2 better have at least one straight hour or more of robots fighting. JJ Abrams has done the impossible and made me want to see a Star Trek movie on the big screen (well, him and seeing Diora Baird as a green skinned Orion slave girl).

But that’s not all. We get a new Terminator movie that will hopefully win us all back over after T3. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button looks to be quite the movie, though once again the UK get that way later than the US. The Road and The Time Travellers Wife might finally get released, Pixar’s, Up will no doubt capture all of our imaginations and probably most exciting James Cameron is back with Avatar.

Now Jimmy C’s return hasn’t quite got me ga-ga just yet, mainly due to it being quite a way off, but let’s face it, when the first trailer hits this could very well be the event of the year. James Cameron... Sci-Fi... Ten or so years of build up... who am I kidding? it’s gonna be a huge movie event. 2009 could really be quite special and I‘ll see you there. Happy New Year!

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Blue-Kal-El wrote: Chris, you are overreacting to the whole thing. The reason why (IMO) you have a comments section on your articles is so that you can actually realize that there are MANY points of view for everything, and ALL are valid, and I would've assumed that you would be used to people not liking what you think. I know this is an extremely old post, but I've just been reading this in preparation for possibly doing something this year and I have to respond.

If you actually read my posts in this thread you will see that I have absolutely no problem with people liking different films to our review staff. What I do have a problem with is the way some people chose to voice their opinions. There is absolutely no need to try and belittle our contributors just because you don't agree with their taste in films. Doing so does not add anything of value to the discussion. It's very easy to post a snide comment, but not quite so easy to give a considered response with reasons for liking or disliking a particular film. Perhaps that's why some people take the easy option.

Quote: I also think that the reason you don't post this kind of articles, is that (like many of us) you don't like to receive criticism, or read that people have very different opinions others than yours. I do post 'these' kinds of articles, and many reviews, all of which are open for debate. There is a difference between that and certain people posting deliberately obtuse comments. As far as I'm concerned if you post on here looking to stir it up you're fair game. The majority of people are courteous when they post on this site, some are not. You'll find plenty of people who comment on my reviews disagreeing with my like or dislike of a film, but generally they do so in a polite manner without resorting to "you're an idiot because you didn't like 'x'" type comments, as was the case in this thread.

I agree that The Dark Knight is flawed. It's by no means perfect for a good few reasons, Superhero movies rarely are - but for a long time Batman/Joker fan I just loved seeing the relationship on screen this well presented(as well as a fantastic Jim Gordon portrayl). I have a lot of history with Batman and it all just added up to pure delight and the main reason why it stole my top spot. Which is more than likely the same reason its taken a lot of peoples top spots.

As for Panda, it may not wear it's heart on its sleeve as beautifully as Wall.E did but theres a lot going on under the surface with that Panda and it's got a real innocence and pay off that caught me on both viewings. All the elements just came together for me and I totally bought into it all.

With Wall E, I was hooked with the opening, dialogue free introductions and totally with Wall.E as a character but I had no connection to he human element and it lost me (before winning me back with the amazing end scenes). There's no arguments from me that it's a fantastic piece of work and Wall.E missed my top 10 by a whisker, but as a whole movie, I took more satisfaction from Kung Fu Panda.

Chris, you are overreacting to the whole thing. The reason why (IMO) you have a comments section on your articles is so that you can actually realize that there are MANY points of view for everything, and ALL are valid, and I would've assumed that you would be used to people not liking what you think.

I also think that the reason you don't post this kind of articles, is that (like many of us) you don't like to receive criticism, or read that people have very different opinions others than yours.

Sorry, for the above Marcus, and thanks for the article. I'm glad to see that you actually liked Lars (which I loved, it's a great movie and story with a great performance), but disappointed that you liked Juno (I can't stand the attitude Juno has in the movie...).

Also, the only Apatow movie that I really like is 40 year old; Superbad I liked, but not as much as 40...the rest I don't like. I saw Pineapple in theatres, and wasn't really wowed by it.

But Kung Fu Panda over Wall-E? Also disagree. I don't think KFP had any real emotion to it, unlike (IMO) with Wall-E, which for me has been the most magical experience in a theatre for along time. The 'dance' scene with Wall-E and EVE, and just the first half of the movie, just astonishing. As for TDK, I don't hate the movie, I was just disappointed by it. I know that in a few years most of the people who thought of it as 'the second coming' will realize that it is a flawed movie.

Then again, thanks for giving us the forum to freely interchange ideas... =D ...oh, and why don't you post your "Extended Top Ten 2008" Edition (mocking DVD releases, of course)?

Yes, I'm definitely excited to see what Del Toro does with the third Hellboy film (whenenver it's eventually filmed haha)! But as for the next few years, I'm sure we all can expect two amazing films (Hobbit and it's sequel) with a lot of creativity involved and emotional character development, both of which I feel are key components of many of his films.

But as for the rest of your list Marcus, I respect all of your choices... I loved Pineapple Express, particularly Franco's character... he really pulled it off, and I really enjoyed watching him act like a goofball after seeing him act moody and vengeful in the last Spiderman movie... it's about time he turned that frown upside down! (I know, corny - but appropriate haha).

Chris Gould wrote: This is an English-language website so it's hardly surprising that the list is comprised of English-language films.

If this is an English-language website why on earth do you have foreign film posters in your signature, eh? Makes no sense.

Besides, then one shouldn´t expect to see annoucement for foreign films on this website either. Neither shouldn´t OldBoy be among any top 10 on any previous Top 10 list on this website. That´s just a limited viewpoint, IMO.

Movies tells international stories with international values with international feelings - regardless of the language. If one limited one self to ONLY English-language movies, then they don´t have true passion for films in general, which we of course, all have, right?

Grrr. You're all wrong about Hellboy 2. It's brilliant and none of you know what you're talking about. You wouldn't know art if it sat on your face. Especially Chris who seems to be under the delusion that Hellboy 2 is an animated film, unless I've mis-read him. Duh... try watching the wholefilm guy.

CuzMan wrote: I just hope that they don't ruin such an original premise when the next Hancock film is released!

I know. It's sort of run its course within the single installment I feel. But then you never know. The 'God' aspect could very well lead onto other things. Depends how big they wanted to go with it, I guess.

As with Hellboy, I wasn't invested enough after the first film - so i guess I just came away from the second liking the fact I really enjoyed it for it's willingless to have some fun with it's characters in all the diffrent scenarios.

I think I preferred the original Hellboy to the sequel. I haven't gotten around to watching the BD yet, but I looked at some of the extras last night and was quite interested in the animated prologue. Looks like they're setting up some classic villains for the third film, if it ever arrives (del Toro is busy with The Hobbit and Ron Perlman ain't no spring chicken).

I definitely respect that! I agree with what you're saying in some respects, especially the lack of emphasis about the Golden Army's entrance/execution. I guess I just have a soft spot for Del Toro's work, I find it hard not to like it (even if it isn't perfect) because of his love of imagination and lack of fear to flesh out his ideas, no matter how wierd they are. And I agree, I liked Hancock as well, particularly because I find that Will Smith has a good screen presence, and can win a movie over for me in a way that a less capable lead actor could not. I just hope that they don't ruin such an original premise when the next Hancock film is released!

I did like Hellboy 2 as a bit of fun - but I wasn't a big fan of the lack of bad guy development. I really dug Prince Nuada and I thought all of his scenes were great but when they finally got to the showdown it was all over really fast and the Golden Armies inclusion was a bit of a non event. (sort of how the original Hellboy played out really)

Saying that I probaby prefer it to Hellboy 1, mainly because I think this installment has a lot more heart and I loved how playful it was with all of the characters. The sing-a-long Manilow bit was one of the feel good moments of the year for sure and Del Toro unleashed this time out made for lots of wow moments even if they never quite gelled together as a whole.

I enjoyed it - but i think I enjoyed some of the other Superhero movies of 2008 more (I'm actually one of the few that really liked Hancock, despite it's change of gears mid way through).

I'm a new member on this site, but I've been visiting it for a long time. I'm just wondering, Marcus, did you like Hellboy II? I thought it was another amazing film by Del Toro, I'm just curious why you didn't mention it even as an honorable mention.

Gromit wrote: I´m afraid your wrong, mate. What differ from my post and yours is that your post is humorless. Very childlike, actually. But thanks for the criticism anyway.

I´m always choked not to see a single non-english film make it into a yearly Top 10. That just tells you all about peoples limited taste for movies. Sorry, to say but I mean it. It's wasn't supposed to be funny, 'mate' (and if yours was, something was lost in translation). Anyone with half a brain could see that I was making a point about rude people coming here and slating our reviewer's opinion. It happens every year, which is why most of the team don't bother with these articles any more. There are more constructive and polite ways for people to interact with our staff than 'I´m sorry, but if I hadn´t slapped myself in the face I really thought it was a top ten terribles of the year 2008.'

I deliberately over-exaggerated in order to point out the stupidity of posting such things. You don't agree with his list, fine, post your own and state your reasons for your choices instead of belittling his. This is an English-language website so it's hardly surprising that the list is comprised of English-language films. These articles are intended to spark conversation, not to offer an excuse to people to criticise our staff.

GeneKelly wrote: for such a movie site you list some movies that came out in 2007 LAME.. Here's a case in point. Instead of doing your research and realising that films have international release dates, you assume that Marcus doesn't know what he's talking about when it fact it is you that is mistaken.

Still many movies from 08 I need to see. So this is a rough list. I still need to see: I.O.U.S.A, Religulous, In Search Of A Midnight Kiss, RocknRolla, Milk, Man On Wire, Valkyrie, Zack and Miri Make A Porno, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Gran Torino, Twilight, Che, Gamorrah, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, Defiance, Trouble The Water, The Good The Bad and the Weird, Fighter, Kabluey

Marcus1138 wrote: Gromit wrote: I´m always choked not to see a single non-english film make it into a yearly Top 10. That just tells you all about peoples limited taste for movies. Sorry, to say but I mean it.

If I enjoyed a "non English" movie enough to put it in my top 10 it would have featured. I thought [REC] was brilliant, The Orphanage was great, there was an okay showing for Anime worldwide in 2008 as well but I'm not gonna put them on a top 10 list as a 'token' non English movie.

I'm just listing the movies I enjoyed the most in 2008 not really caring where they came from or what language they're in. Just so happens that this year no 'non English' movies made my list. Fair enough.

Marcus1138 wrote: Gromit wrote: I´m always choked not to see a single non-english film make it into a yearly Top 10. That just tells you all about peoples limited taste for movies. Sorry, to say but I mean it.

If I enjoyed a "non English" movie enough to put it in my top 10 it would have featured. I thought [REC] was brilliant, The Orphanage was great, there was an okay showing for Anime worldwide in 2008 as well but I'm not gonna put them on a top 10 list as a 'token' non English movie.

I'm just listing the movies I enjoyed the most in 2008 not really caring where they came from or what language they're in. Just so happens that this year no 'non English' movies made my list.

You getting the feeling the time you took creating this article hasn't been appreciated, Marcus?

Chris Gould wrote: Gromit wrote: Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

Gromit wrote: I´m always choked not to see a single non-english film make it into a yearly Top 10. That just tells you all about peoples limited taste for movies. Sorry, to say but I mean it.

If I enjoyed a "non English" movie enough to put it in my top 10 it would have featured. I thought [REC] was brilliant, The Orphanage was great, there was an okay showing for Anime worldwide in 2008 as well but I'm not gonna put them on a top 10 list as a 'token' non English movie.

I'm just listing the movies I enjoyed the most in 2008 not really caring where they came from or what language they're in. Just so happens that this year no 'non English' movies made my list.

...and The Dark Knight is where on that list?[/quote] I was very disappointed. Too long. The story was a mess structurewise. It was two movies in one, which doesn´t work However, beautiful images and CGI. The first with Mr. Bale was miles better. Perhaps, my expectations were too high. Anyhow, I´ll still look forward to the third instalment.

Chris Gould wrote: Gromit wrote: Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

Okay, it's s**t and you suck. That's about as constructive as your post. I´m afraid your wrong, mate. What differ from my post and yours is that your post is humorless. Very childlike, actually. But thanks for the criticism anyway.

I´m always choked not to see a single non-english film make it into a yearly Top 10. That just tells you all about peoples limited taste for movies. Sorry, to say but I mean it.

Just out of interest, how come no place/mention for There Will be Blood? Not like it?

I did. In fact it'd be in my Top 20 if I extended the list. (and that's great considering just how many movies I saw last year). There Will Be Blood is the sort of film I think I'll appreciate a lot more on repeat viewings over the years in all honesty.

James Tully wrote: Leaving Wall-e off the list? Controversial! Especially over Indy 4......... Great to see The Mist getting some recognition.

WALL.E would also be in the 10-20 run. I actually watched WALL.E again last night and I stand by my rumblings above. WALL.E is a truly great character - probably my favorite from the entire Pixar bunch but the human element of the movie just does nothing for me, other than make me miss hanging out with WALL.E and E.V.E more. I want the humans to drop WALL.E and E.V.E off on earth (allowing all the other cool robots to stay)and then go back to space.

Thanks for coming back to my comments. I agree with you about the 'human' half of Wall-e, but for me it did not detract from the whole. And the overall feel was the impact from the first half. (I had the same feelings about Danny Boyle's 'Sunshine', of which the ending spoiled for some people).

I also see a lot of films during the year ( I work in a cinema) so I am always overly critical of top ten lists! I really liked There will be Blood, but have very little desire to see it again. Whereas 'Kung Fu Panda' I could probably watch 6 times tomorrow!

Chris Gould wrote: Gromit wrote: Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

I mean really, the whole article is someones opinion, but you seem to get defensive when someone suggests it's not perfect and that (god forbid!) they like different types of film. You call them out on it, they post their list (also not perfect, but then opinions rarely are) and your response is...you suck.

JackJackMN wrote: I liked Zack and Miri Make a porno a lot more then Pineapple Express. I just had dozens more laugh out loud moments for Z&M then I did at PE. I guess my expectations were too high for PE. I am going to pick it up on BR, I am HUGE Seth Rogan fan. I am hoping I like it more on my 2nd and 3rd viewing.

I think i was the same for Zack and Miri expectations wise. I liked it but it wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be. Maybe I'll get better results when it comes and I get a 2nd viewing

Gromit wrote: Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

Great list, I enjoyed all the films you liked except for 2 I never saw, Lars and the real girl and Walk Hard. I'm planing on giving them a rent some day.

I liked Zack and Miri Make a porno a lot more then Pineapple Express. I just had dozens more laugh out loud moments for Z&M then I did at PE. I guess my expectations were too high for PE. I am going to pick it up on BR, I am HUGE Seth Rogan fan. I am hoping I like it more on my 2nd and 3rd viewing.

Gromit wrote: Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

Just out of interest, how come no place/mention for There Will be Blood? Not like it?

I did. In fact it'd be in my Top 20 if I extended the list. (and that's great considering just how many movies I saw last year). There Will Be Blood is the sort of film I think I'll appreciate a lot more on repeat viewings over the years in all honesty.

James Tully wrote: Leaving Wall-e off the list? Controversial! Especially over Indy 4......... Great to see The Mist getting some recognition.

WALL.E would also be in the 10-20 run. I actually watched WALL.E again last night and I stand by my rumblings above. WALL.E is a truly great character - probably my favorite from the entire Pixar bunch but the human element of the movie just does nothing for me, other than make me miss hanging out with WALL.E and E.V.E more. I want the humans to drop WALL.E and E.V.E off on earth (allowing all the other cool robots to stay)and then go back to space.

Worst Nightmare wrote: AvP 2 got the ripped off award from me due to the difference in times for the different regions "Uncut" versions.... Still only a popcorn movie - they seem destined to never make a good AvP movie.... which is mental really because a good approach seems fairly straight forward - why they never used the original comic book story has always bugged me - it was the perfect set up.

Chris Gould wrote: What was the point of that comment? Why not post your list so we can all take a look and judge you on your movie taste (or lack thereof)? All right, here´s my top ten in no particular order. Critize it all you want.

I don't understand this list. Is it for the best DVD/Blu releases? Or best movies of 2008? Because Pineapple Express hasn't been released yet on DVD, and half of your movies were released in theaters last year, so I'm confused. The introduction paragraph really didn't clear things up for me. I'm assuming this is a hybrid of both?

I don't agree with any of your picks, if this list is best films of 2008. Here is my list:

1. WALL-E 2. The Dark Knight 3. August Rush 4. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian 5. No Country For Old Men 6. Iron Man 7. Kung Fu Panda 8. National Treasure: Book of Secrets 9. Juno 10. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

kingdbz93 wrote: 2009 will be the year of the Watchmen, I can't wait. Its already been reported that the extended cut of Watchmen wil be released on DVD/Blu-Ray 4 months after its in theaters, so that would mean July.

I agree with Marcus about what will likely turn out to be the event of 2009. James Cameron's been a force to be reckoned with in a fair chunk of his films, with many of them loaded with iconic moments, lines and characters, not to mention single-handedly redefining the modern blockbuster more than once.

I'd also rate The Dark Knight as my favourite of 2008, but would probably have it tied with Wall-E. Vastly different films, and I loved them both for different reasons. I don't envy you putting your top 10 into an order. Thinking about what to put after those two and how to structure the list isn't an easy thing. As I sit here thinking on that, I tip the hat to you sir for an entertaining and well-reasoned read.

Though I missed, Pineapple Express, Walk Hard, Kung Fu Panda, Lars and the real girl and Juno. But I will check them out if the sale prices are kind. I can't believe Cloverfield was only out in 08, it really feels like a lot longer.

Bouncy X wroteQuote: as for AVP 2...i actually liked it, i thought it did a good job of feeling like the original 6 movies. I agree with you Bouncy, I know a lot of fans poured molten scorn on it but I enjoyed AVP2.

For this year I'm really looking forward to Star Trek, can't wait for it.

was that released in the UK already? does that mean North America will only get it as dtv? lol

as for AVP 2...i actually liked it more than the first, not a tough thing to do i'm sure but yeah. i seem to be one of the few who even enjoyed based on reviews and people online. i thought it did a good job of feeling like the original 6 movies, part of that was probably the use of the original music cues but still. after the PG-13'efied first movie, it was nice to see them go back to the violent and gory R rated style.

but of course i bet if people who work for this site and read it were to look through my movie collection, they'd see many movies they think sucked so yeah...my personal taste is special i guess. lol

but i love the concept of this best of list, a list of movies he just enjoyed not a "this was an amazing piece of filmaking" type list that most usually make. this way we dont see the same 7 movies being in every list like everyone else. really, sometimes i think critics just like some movies because other critics like them.

I think Marcus set his stall out at the beginning of his list didn't he? It's a list of films he enjoyed most rather than a list of the 'best of the best'.

I think we all have instances of liking certain lesser films over the critically aclaimed one's. An example of that for me this year would be that I enjoyed Hellboy 2 a lot more than The Dark Knight. I accept that TDK is the 'better' film and is more layered than Hellboy, but as for it being a 'hoot at the movies', Bat wasn't as much fun as Red.

As for Wall-E I liked it, appreciated it's technical prowess and found it moving in parts, but I can't say that I love it and it wouldn't be on my Top 10 list of 'Most Enyoyed films of 2008' either.

I liked Changling but not enough to hit the top 10, something didn't quite click completely with it for me and how ever much I liked WALL.E as a character (and that is an awful lot) I prefered Kung Fu Panda as an overall movie. Though I'd imagine WALL.E has the Oscar in the bag.